A total of 15 percent of those surveyed would be likely to
spend $10 more per month for digital cable, while another 10 percent would prefer to
switch to direct-broadcast satellite. Another 11 percent are already digital customers,
either of digital cable or DBS.

Current digital-cable customers cited picture quality as
one of their biggest disappointments.

In a press release, Stephen Liebmann, president of S.
Liebmann & Associates, advised cable operators to compete with DBS providers on
quality, as well as quantity, in order to realize the potential of the digital-cable
market.